604 
Io Sacirt.— Mr. S. C. Chandler has discussed, in the 
Astronomische Nachrichten, Mr. Gore’s observations of this 
star, together with some of his own, and some observations 
made for the Harvard and Oxford Photometric Catalogues. 
The result of his inquiry is to give M = 1885 December 
4d. gh. 36m. G.M.T. + 8d. gh. trom. (E- 391), the duration 
of increase being 3‘00d., and of decrease 5°38d., and the mag- 
nitude at maximum being 5°6, and at minimum 6°4. Mr. 
Chandler considers it likely that the period will prove to be 
within two minutes of the truth. Mr. Espin’s value, however, 
is th. 28m. shorter. 
THE OBSERVATORY OF RIO DE JANEIRO.—M. Cruls, in a 
communication to the Paris Academy of Sciences, states that 
the long-talked-of transference of the Rio Observatory is about 
to be commenced. The site chosen lies nearly on the same 
parallel as the present Observatory, but two minutes farther to 
the west. The Brazilian Observatory possesses, from its proxi- 
mity to the tropic, an advantage over all others, in that for forty 
days in the year the sun’s zenith distance does not exceed 1°. 
M. Cruls anticipates that in the new edifice he will be able to 
undertake, with success, observations of terrestrial magnetism, 
and of atmospheric electricity, and he would wish to set up a 
delicate seismograph for recording slight movements of the soil. 
He trusts also that the Observatory will bear its share in the 
great photographic survey of the heavens proposed by Admiral 
Mouchez. 
ASTRONOMICAL PHENOMENA FOR THE 
WEEK 1886 OCTOBER 24-30 
(FoR the reckoning of time the civil day, commencing at 
Greenwich mean midnight, counting the hours on to 24, 
is here employed. ) 
At Greenwich on October 24 
Sun rises, 6h. 41m. ; souths, 11h. 44m. 16°6s.; sets, 16h. 47m. ; 
decl. on meridian, 11° 50’ S.: Sidereal Time at Sunset, 
18h. 59m. 
Moon (New on October 27) rises, 2h. 37m. ; souths, gh. 19m. ; 
sets, 15h. 48m, ; decl. on meridian, 4° 45’ N. 
Planet Rises Souths Sets Decl. on meridian 
h. m. h. m. h, m. ars 
Mercury) <:.. 8 22) .<. (20479... 17 12) ).-seetSeaolS. 
Venus ... 5 41 7) 00 O) fee 101370 bP eOMS STO. 
Mars 10 44 14°37) cc. | 1S) 301et. mee aeOlS. 
Jupiter... 5 33 Tio 3...) 16133) sane AS 
Saturn... 21 24” 5u26) s..56 1325 21 18N. 
* Indicates that the rising is that of the preceding evening. 
Oct. h. 
30 Io... Mars in conjunction with and 6° 5’ south 
of the Moon. 
Variable Stars 
Star R.A. Decl. 
. hes) im: ome h. m. 
U Cephei © 52'2.... 51 16N.... Oct..2ayaamgn 77 
” 28, 4 30 m 
ReCetie. 252072) t=) 10° 42)S. sen ay) 208 MT 
Algol 3 (0°8\.2..40 31) Ni -:. 5,1 s24nzomens) vz 
» 27, 19 52 m 
A Tauri 3 54:4°... 12 I0)N.-.. 55 25392283077 
93 29, 21 22 m 
UiOphinchi. = —..07 T0l8i.. 1 20 Nene 55 AO 72 
and at intervals of 20 8 
BlLyre... ... ... 18 45°9... 33 14 N. ... Oct. 30, 21 30 m 
S Vulpeculze LOMAS Tien 27 LOO) ce) tas) ees M 
R Sagittze 5 ie Eee MOMENI o55) op. ZH m 
5 Cephei > 220240) .-2) 57 5 OV No ees ss RZ SSE EOLLT 
33) 2O,n2LgO) 772 
M signifies maximum ; #7 minimum. 
Meteor Showers 
The present week offers fewer active radiants than the one 
just past. The following radiants are, however, represented :— 
Near 8 Canis Minoris, R.A, 105°, Decl. 12° N.; and from 
Cancer, R A. 133°, Decl. 21° N. Both yield swift meteors, 
especially the latter. October 24 and 29 are fireball dates. 
NATURE 
[ Oct. 21, 1886 
GEOGRAPHICAL NOTES 
THE last volume of the /zvestia of the Caucasus Geographical 
Society (vol. viii. 2) contains a great variety of geographical 
information. General Stebnitzky contributes a most interesting 
paper on the figure of the earth, being a discussion of results 
obtained from pendulum-observations in connection with the 
opinions expressed by M. Faye. An excellent map of the 
province of Kubaii, on a scale of 13 miles to an inch, is accom- 
panied by a sketch of the colonisation of the province, which 
already has a Russian population of more than one million 
inhabitants. M. Koshkul gives a short description of the 
“*Naphtha Mountain,” in the Transcaspian region. The tele- 
graphic determination of the longitudes of Tiflis, Shemakha, and 
Baku acquires the more interest, as it allows of the determination 
of the general error (14”°3) of the Caucasian triangulation and the 
deviations from the vertical line, due to local causes at these 
three places. A list of points whose positition has been deter- 
mined by the triangulation made in the Transcaspian region, as 
also in Khiva and Bukhara, is given by MM. Pervas and 
Gedeonoff, and will be most welcome to cartographers. Among 
the notes we notice the following :—On the Caucasians of 
Kuban, due to M. Zagursky, whose researches on the languages 
of the Caucasus are always so great a help to ethnography ; a 
list of the Caucasian population in Kubaii in 1883, from which 
we learn that from Kubafi alone no less than 13,600 Circassians 
have emigrated since 1871 ; M. Chantre’s craniological measure- 
ments are summed up by M. Zagursky ; and M. Lessar contri- 
butes a paper on the north-western frontier of Afghanistan. 
The ‘‘ Appendix” shows where the chief attention of the Cau- 
casus Geographical Society is now directed. They contain 
translations of a work dealing with Armenia (the ‘‘ Toros 
Akhpar” guide through Armenia, by the Archbishop Garegin 
Srvandzyantz) ; of the Turkish ‘‘Salname” for the Erzeroum 
Vilayet ; of notes on Syrian-Khaldeans, by a native from Hosra- 
bad; and of Mr. Charles Wilson’s lecture on Asia Minor, 
delivered before the London Geographical Society. 
THE first fascicule of the full Reports of the Polar Meteoro- 
logical Station at the mouth of the Lena has just been published. 
It is the first fascicule of the second part, and contains the 
meteorological observations made since September 1, 1882, to 
August 31, 1883, compiled by M. Eigner, and published under 
the supervision of Dr, R. Lenz; the second fascicule of the 
same volume will contain the meteorological observations in 
1883 -84 ; while the first volume is reserved to magnetical obser- 
vations, and the third will be devoted to the non-obligatory 
observations, among which the aurorz will occupy a prominent 
place. The meteorological observations now published, com- 
prise the pressure of air, the temperature, elasticity of vapours, 
relative moistness, force and duration of wind, nebulosity, snow 
and rain, as also the temperature on the surface of the soil and 
the snow, and at depths of 40, 80, and 160 cm., these last two 
missing for the months of July and August 1883, in consequence 
of an accident to a thermometer. All observations are given 
in full, that is, for every hour,*as also the monthly ayer- 
ages. The daily range of all elements is also represented by 
curves, whose scale is exactly that accepted for the publication 
of the French observations at Cape Horn; the work is accom- 
panied, moreover, by a map of the mouth of the Lena, and of 
the station itself, as also by a drawing representing the sta- 
tion amidst the tundra, on the banks of a branch of the Lena. 
A full description of the instruments and their corrections is 
given both in Russian and in German. 
THE October number of the Proceedings of the Royal Geo- 
graphical Society has for its leading paper one by Sir Francis 
de Winton, on the Congo Free State, the conditions of its 
administration by Europeans, and its probable future. In this 
latter respect Sir Francis de Wintonis naturally inclined to look 
on the favourable side. Of more strictly geographical interest is 
the letter from Mr. Grenfell recounting his latest explorations 
in the missionary steamer Peace, of the tributaries of the Congo, 
between Leopoldville and Stanley Falls, with very detailed 
maps. 
Petermann’s Mittetlungen for October contains a long paper 
by M. Nikitin, the chief geologist of the Russian Geological 
Committee on Glaciers in Russia. His object is to lay down 
the limits of the traces of glacial action in that country. Lieut. 
von Frangois’s journeys in the southern Congo basin are the 
subject of the next paper ; and, finally, there is a brief account 
